


a virtue

by michpat6



Series: aftermath [12]
Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: :(, Angsty Wangsty, F/M, Sorry not sorry?, and the master sword doesn’t help, but for realsies this time, fi does not have rights in this one, he’s not doing great, link only
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-30
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:06:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28418082
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/michpat6/pseuds/michpat6
Summary: Zelda is gone. ‘He has no idea where she went’ gone. ‘What if she gets attacked’ gone. ‘What if she accidentally warped to Hebra and is freezing to death’ gone. ‘What if she warped to the Akkala labyrinth and is surrounded by Guardians’ gone.
Relationships: Link & Zelda (Legend of Zelda), Link/Zelda (Legend of Zelda)
Series: aftermath [12]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2033743
Comments: 20
Kudos: 136





	a virtue

Zelda is gone. ‘He has no idea where she went’ gone. ‘What if she gets attacked’ gone. ‘What if she accidentally warped to Hebra and is freezing to death’ gone. ‘What if she warped to the Akkala labyrinth and is surrounded by Guardians’ gone.

 _ Gone_ .

And Link is here. Crying in Hateno, with no way to know where she went. With no way to get to her fast enough if she needs him.

_ I’ll be back soon. Don’t worry. _

That’s like telling a dog not to bark.

And how soon is ‘soon’? Ten minutes? Thirty? An hour? Two hours? Tomorrow morning?

If she doesn’t come back until tomorrow morning Link thinks he’ll combust.

What is he supposed to do? He can’t go out and look for her, because what if she comes back when he’s gone and then  _ she _ goes out to find  _ him _ and then they’re wandering Hyrule forever, looking for each other? But he can’t just stay in the house waiting for her, either, because what if something happens and he’s not there because he decided to stay?

The Master Sword hums, leaning against the wall next to his bed, and-

Zelda is standing in front of a shrine, holding the Sheikah Slate and glaring at him as he jogs up to her.  _ I thought I made it clear that I am not in need of an escort. _

And he finally gets it. His memories, the visions of his past lives…It’s the Master Sword trying to talk to him.

“This is different,” he tells it, sniffling and wiping stray tears from his eyes. “This isn’t Before, the monsters that are still out there are even more dangerous because-”

The Master Sword buzzes. Memory Zelda spins on her heel.  _ And stop following me! _

Link sighs, defeated.

He doesn’t sleep. He really should, he can feel himself crashing the longer he sits at the table, but how is he supposed to rest when Zelda isn’t home?

Instead, he gets up and moves his silverware to the drawer she wanted. He makes his bed, goes upstairs to make hers, and stops in front of the picture of them and the Champions on his wall, touching the table in front of him as he leans in to get a better look.

He never noticed that Revali and Mipha were making the same face, only that Revali’s reaction was more comical because he was so… _ interesting _ .

Did he like Revali? His memories make him think he didn’t, because the Rito clearly didn’t like him, but they were teammates. They were fellow Champions.

 _ They _ were divine coworkers.

He knows he liked Mipha because they were childhood friends, they were close enough that she fell in love with him, and Daruk was like an older brother. Urbosa…

Link isn’t sure what to think about Urbosa. His one memory of her is the shovel talk on Naboris, but from what he read in her diary and his knowledge of her relationship to Zelda and Zelda’s mother, along with the violence of her Fury, he knows she must have at least cared for him a little. 

But what did  he think of her?

Downstairs, the Master Sword buzzes.

He’s walking alongside Zelda, on the edge of Hyrule Field and heading towards the tree where she asked him to eat a frog.

_ What do you think about the other Champions?  _ she asks, fiddling with a component on the Sheikah Slate.  _ You were especially quiet at the banquet. _

_They’re fine_ ,  he softly answers. She’s cute when she’s tinkering.  _ And I was talking to you and Mipha. _

_ You already know us, Link, that doesn’t count. What did you think of Urbosa? _

He shrugs.  _ She scares me a little. Watched me like a hawk whenever I came within five feet of you, and kept touching her scimitar like she was going to throw it at my head. _

Memory Zelda laughs.  _ She’s just looking out for me. You have nothing to worry about. _

_ I’ll be back soon. Don’t worry. _

What?

The world is on fire and a Guardian aims for his heart-

_Beep beep beep beep beep_ -

Zelda is sobbing in his arms in a forest and then she’s panting in his ear in her bedroom, kissing his neck-

_Happy birthday_ ,  he whispers, putting his hands on her hips-

_Beepbeepbeepbeepbeep_ -

_ Open your eyes. _

Link gasps like he’s coming up for air, a silent scream dragged from his lungs. He’s down on one knee, clutching his chest with one hand and gripping the edge of the table with his other. His head  burns and he’s shaking so much he thinks he’s vibrating-

His stomach churns and then he’s dry heaving, choking on his own saliva.

“What…” he crawls to the railing and peers down at the sword through the gaps. “What was that?”

The Master Sword is silent.

“ _ What the fuck was that _ ?!” he screams, voice hoarse and bouncing off the walls. “ _ Why would you show me that _ ?!”

He can feel her warmth in his fingers and her weight in his palms. He can feel her breath on his face and her skin on his lips. He can hear her say his name with such reverence that his ears ring. 

The Master Sword offers no answer.

Again, Link sobs. 

(He hasn’t had a Bad Day in months.)

Sweat pours down his face and he’s still trembling.

“Have to…” he licks his lips, throat dry. Does he have a fever? “Have to get up.”

His body disagrees, frozen on the floor.

“Come on,” he wheezes to himself, tears dripping from his chin to his forearms. “Get up.”

A chill runs down his spine and he shudders.

“ _Get up_ ,” he hisses. “You’re the Hero,  _ get up_.”

His hands, eventually, go still.

(Is it better or worse, he wonders, to have a Bad Day after a string of Good or to have a series of Bad? With the series of Bad, he knows what to expect. But with the sudden one-offs, it’s only one day instead of seven.)

His legs, eventually, can handle his weight.

(One awful day of torture or seven mediocre days of persistent anxiety? Which punishment is better? Which is worse?)

He, eventually, hobbles to the stairs and puts one foot on the top step. Lowers his other onto it as well. Grips the banister with both hands, white-knuckled.

He doesn’t mean to, but he times himself. Fourteen minutes and sixteen seconds later, he is at the bottom of the stairs and unable to breathe, leaning against the wall to stay upright.

The Master Sword hums, and he braces himself.

Nothing happens.

Sagging with relief, Link trudges to his bed and slides under the covers, pulling them over his head.

(Which one does he deserve?) 

**Author's Note:**

> all i can say is ouch
> 
> also ao3 does not like me posting this from my phone what is up with that shit


End file.
